Demographic Evaluation of Forensic Cases Presented to the Emergency Medicine Clinic of a Tertiary Care Hospital

Abstract

Objective: This study aims to examine the demographic and epidemiological characteristics of forensic cases arriving at the emergency department of a tertiary-care hospital in Turkey. The objectives include profiling the demographics of the cases, documenting the types of injuries, understanding the circumstances surrounding these incidents, and identifying any potential seasonal or temporal trends. Material and Methods: We conducted a retrospective cross-sectional study, utilizing data from 9,427 forensic cases that were presented to the emergency department from January 1 to December 31, 2008. Data were extracted from the hospital's electronic medical records after obtaining the necessary ethical approvals. The inclusion criteria encompassed all age groups for trauma-related cases, while medical forensic cases were limited to subjects aged 16 and above. Cases with incomplete data were excluded from the analysis. The cases were categorized into nine subgroups based on the type of incident, following the classification system of the International Classification of Diseases, 10th Revision (ICD-10). Results: Forensic cases accounted for 3.107% of all emergency department admissions. The majority of these cases were males (68.83%), and they were primarily associated with trauma (86.80%). A significant gender disparity was observed in the types of cases, with males being more prevalent in traumatic cases, while females were more commonly seen in non-traumatic cases. Seasonal patterns revealed a higher incidence of forensic cases during the summer months. Interestingly, there was an uptick in female suicide attempts during the summer, whereas male suicide attempts saw an increase during the winter. Conclusion: This study provides valuable insights into the demographic and seasonal distribution of forensic cases in emergency settings. The findings underscore the importance of implementing targeted preventive measures and specialized healthcare protocols, especially in light of the high occurrence of trauma-related cases and seasonal trends. Future research endeavors should delve deeper into understanding the sociocultural and behavioral factors that contribute to these observed patterns.